Allison loves anime; In fact, I was thinking of having a chapter where she and Brian are on downtime in Baltimore and Otakon is going on at the time, and she gets out a camera to take pics of a bunch of cosplayers.

This being said, if she showed up at a con, Initial D is impossible to cosplay. But there's a solution. She'll show up as Rena Hayami protagonist of R: Racing Evolution:

If the car doesn't attract attention, the open nomex suit certainly will.

@Kiskaloo wrote:I'm sure Kara's excitement about the whole thing would not help...

Especially when it's time for "fan karaoke".

(If Kara has a "dirty secret", it might be doing dance covers on Youtube.)

...probably not, no

Kara: Monty! Monty! You have to try this with me!

Monty: No, no I don't.

Kara: Oh come on it'll be fun! Don't be such a buzz kill.

Monty: We're supposed to be halfway across the bloody city by now and all you've done so far is drag me from one bleeding booth to another. Each one full of exactly the same cheaply made garbage as the last. *grabs a poster from Kara's complimentary show bag... Monty's thrown her's away in disgust by now* And don't even get me started on this, the print stock's rubbish and the print job itself is low quality. I could do better in a garden shed! I have done better in a garden shed!

Kara: Just one song.

Monty: *resignedly* Will it get me out of here faster?

Kara: Yes! One song and we leave.

Monty:*sigh... The shit I put up with for this job. You find something where I can speak the language right?

@MP5 wrote:Allison loves anime; In fact, I was thinking of having a chapter whereshe and Brian are on downtime in Baltimore and Otakon is going on atthe time, and she gets out a camera to take pics of a bunch ofcosplayers.

Monty... doesn't.

She doesn't hate it as such, but she just doesn't get the appeal or how people can get excited over it. Then again Monty can't figure out how people can get excited over regular TV shows either, or movies, video games make minimal sense to her and so on

Monty: You are dead positive this is where we're supposed to be meeting Cream Puff and Kara right?

Jethro: I'll calling Pagani to find out. If this turns out to be some sort of sick joke...

Honestly, Monty's probably the last person who should be giving people grief about dressing differently... however that's not going to stop her offering up her opininons on this "cosplay" everyone seems to keep banging on about.

This must be genuinely stressful for Monty if it has her holding Jethro's hand.

Monty: We're supposed to be halfway across the bloody city by now and all you've done so far is drag me from one bleeding booth to another. Each one full of exactly the same cheaply made garbage as the last. *grabs a poster from Kara's complimentary show bag... Monty's thrown her's away in disgust by now* And don't even get me started on this, the print stock's rubbish and the print job itself is low quality. I could do better in a garden shed! I have done better in a garden shed!

Kara: Just one song.

Monty: *resignedly* Will it get me out of here faster?

Kara: Yes! One song and we leave.

Monty:*sigh... The shit I put up with for this job. You find something where I can speak the language right?

Kara: "Okay. Your current outfit is fine. And the karaoke machine can do romanji. So just look at the screen and read the words phonetically."

Monty: "You owe me. I don't know what. And I don't know when I will collect. But you owe me."

Kara: "Hai hai. Ganbatte, senpai!"

[Monty takes to the stage to cheers. She takes the microphone, performs a sound check, and waits for the text to appear on the screen. When it does, she starts:]

Makes me consider how Marisa & Elio would do in such a situation. Elio, I'm sure, would regard the whole scene with horrified disbelief.

Mari, who makes no distinction between anime & western "kids" cartoons would at first act too pretentious to enjoy it, but might eventually get lured in by the fact that she could actually relax and be herself (including carrying her Beretta openly).

Tron Guy: And who are you cosplaying, young lady?

Marisa: Oh, I'm an 11 year old cyborg assassin.

Cat Girl: Brilliant! Great costume!

Elio: Christ...I need a drink. (Jethro walks up just in time and hands him something blue) Thanks mate...eh, what is this anyway?

To be honest, I'm well over the idea of getting up at the arse-crack of dawn so I can stand in a line, so I generally attempt to gentrify the experience a bit these days. This time around I think it was actually more an excuse to take the day off work and go get a nice breakfast and coffee with a mate than to go to the con. I only rocked up at the thing about Midday.

Honestly, I'm finding the con experience less and less enjoyable each year... not even sure if I'll go next time.

@Professor Voodoo wrote: This must be genuinely stressful for Monty if it has her holding Jethro's hand.

Monty: Voodoo, damnit, if you dare say the word "cute" again I'll...

I didn't say a thing.

I find it stressful at times. How Monty, who was only really aware on an academic level that such things actually happened in real life, would cope I don't know.

And yeah, I wouldn't go calling her "cute" right now. She's feeling snapish as is... hence why Michele got referred to as "Cream Puff" rather than his actual name.

@Kiskaloo wrote:Kara: "Okay. Your current outfit is fine. And thekaraoke machine can do romanji. So just look at the screen and read thewords phonetically."

Monty: "You owe me. I don't know what. And I don't know when I will collect. But you owe me."

Kara: "Hai hai. Ganbatte, senpai!"

[Monty takes to the stage to cheers. She takes the microphone, performsa sound check, and waits for the text to appear on the screen. When itdoes, she starts:]

Jethro: Of all the fratellos they could have sent, they sent us. That McDonnell kid likes the crap, why not send her.

And then of course Kara takes up the mic:

Jethro:*blink I can't do this anymore, and if I can't then I'm sure as shit not making Monty put up with it either. Elio, we've not really got anything actually mission related to do till tomorrow right?

Oh, and since it's just down the road from where the Con's held... the bar:

Skyroom... odd mix of mid-century and Tiki influences. Very good on a summer's afternoon. Notably, aside from a few bar stools, you're looking at the grand total of the place's seating. Should be good for Monty and Jethro as they make a cocktail (can't remember the name) that's essentially a GnT on steroids.

Oh, and I want their chairs... badly.

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My original idea was to have her sing the OP to Kannagi since it's a really up-beat dance number and the OP animation is really cute, but then I thought "this is Monty here. She's doing this under duress and even if she wasn't, she's not the kind of girl to dance around the stage. She'd see it as a job and approach it with cold efficiency".

Kara, on the other hand, sees it as a chance to show off so she'd give it 110%.

My original idea was to have her sing the OP to Kannagi since it's a really up-beat dance number and the OP animation is really cute, but then I thought "this is Monty here. She's doing this under duress and even if she wasn't, she's not the kind of girl to dance around the stage. She'd see it as a job and approach it with cold efficiency".

Kara, on the other hand, sees it as a chance to show off so she'd give it 110%.

I'm considering letting Jethro become a little more fashion-forward too before I get, umm... fashion-bored

Inspired by the "Let's Buggy" fashion shoot in INTERSECTION magazine... Though it's in the "car" section of the newsagent it's pretty useless for actual in-depth car information. However it does it in such a cool way that I really don't care.

Anyways, I love it.Looks like they are waiting and he's making sure she does not leave the area... very nice.

Yes, yes she is... hooray for double-sided-tape fashion. I personally really loved the look, it starts to button up just above the navel. To me anyway it somehow manages to be extremely low cut but at the same time glamorous rather than slutty. I think that's in part due to it being a soft knit (which I don't think I managed to get the texture right for) rather than something more edgy.

I know this sounds contradictory, but somehow you've managed to combine racy with wistful. The color palette really sets the mood, and I like that the only flash of bright, non-pastel color is Monty's head-scarf, which draws attention to the only thing moving in the breeze.

Professor Voodoo

Forum Posts : 3422

Location : Hudson Valley, New York

Fan of : That one guy who was only in one episode & didn't have any lines.

@Professor Voodoo wrote:I know this sounds contradictory, but somehow you've managed to combine racy with wistful. The color palette really sets the mood, and I like that the only flash of bright, non-pastel color is Monty's head-scarf, which draws attention to the only thing moving in the breeze.

No, not contradictory at all... infact I'm happy to know it worked. If you pull out the post-prod adjustment layers the scarf is massively over-saturated and almost orange, which was essentially what was needed to make sure it "popped" from the rest of the picture.

Anyways, I love it.Looks like they are waiting and he's making sure she does not leave the area... very nice.

Yes, yes she is... hooray for double-sided-tape fashion. I personally really loved the look, it starts to button up just above the navel. To me anyway it somehow manages to be extremely low cut but at the same time glamorous rather than slutty. I think that's in part due to it being a soft knit (which I don't think I managed to get the texture right for) rather than something more edgy.

Every time I think of double-sided tape fashion, I cant help of thinking of these strapless bras...

@ElfenMagix wrote:Every time I think of double-sided tape fashion, I cant help of thinking of these strapless bras...Even Kara can wear one...

Monty:Tell me you're not putting a bra with that.

Petra: Yes, Sandro said it'd look good. Why?

Monty: Because putting a bra anywhere it's visible automatically makes you look like some tennement tramp. Putting it with a neckline that low turns elegant into slut. It's a slimilar effect to wearing a two-piece nowhere near water.

Ok, first: quick blanket rule I'm making. Unless there's already an artwork thread created, any illustrations I do of other people's OC's I'll be posting in here. Those who's OCs they are can of course then use the illustrations as they wish (though I'd take it as a favor if you'd credit the illustrator).

Quick coloured sketch request (from a bit back) for Jacen Starslayer of his OC, Jay. I sort of pictured Jay as still having traces of that slightly awkward, gangly teenage stage that we all go through... particularly with the height and weight in Jay's profile (he's about 2kg heavier than me, before he got cyborg'd, and a half-inch shorter).

@Jacen: hope it's what you were after mate. Lemme know if there's any changes you'd like made.

"I am the sword of justiceForged by fate and tempered with timeI have struggled to stay true to his dreams and idealsNever knowing defeatNor victoryForever waiting for his returnThis is my, Infinite Sword Dance"

Very cool; he's got a look of either grim determination or sexual frustration in his face...I can't tell which.

Colour version of the same teaser panels:

A "Blacker Girl" eh? Is this a running gag by chance, or just a one-off embarrassment for the long-sufferning Jethro?

It does tend to get in the way doesn't it.

Knowing Jay it's possibly a little from column "a" and a little from column "b".

As to the "Blacker Girl" line... it was intended to be one off originally. But considering Jethro's previous employment (and even aspects of his current employment) I may well let it become a recurring thing.

No colours obvously yet. First one is workshop gear: thinking denim coveralls and a light-blue Gulf Racing V-neck t-shirt. The second is more casual: Lancia-Martini shirt, 3/4 length stretch-denim jeans and Dunlop Volleys (a bit like Converse but much cooler and significantly cheaper). Threw a simple Casio G-shock on her wrist too as it felt right.

@Kiskaloo wrote:Has to be a G-Shock since you know she's going to be banging it around on things as she works.

And they're cheap to replace if she hammers it too hard. I dunno, she doesn't seem like the type of girl who cares much about things like watches... but it's still probably useful for her to be able to tell the time on missions at a glance without needing to drag a phone out.

@Alfisti wrote:Monty: Erm, Voodoo? That particular hand-signal does not mean "I'll take two."

What McQueen was doing in that scene was motioning to his Ferrari rival Erich Stahler (Siegfried Rauch) that he had finished 2nd, while Stahler had gotten 3rd.

See now... I guess this is a cultural difference: because I'd read it as McQueen giving Stahler the forks... which is essentially the sort of hand-signal Monty would use instead of giving someone the finger, flipping the bird, whatever. Classically accompanied by blowing a loud rasberry.

So to me McQueen's going "up yours fucker, I finished ahead of you."

@Professor Voodoo wrote:Assuming she is a fan of the old John Wyer Gulf Porsche team, here's a $250 jacket that Allison could squeal loudly about and beg Brian for.

I'll have to let MP5 figure that one out, but I have seen those jackets around. A mate of mine bought the canvas "True Blue" version a few years back. If it's the same company they also do a non-Gulf (but still with Heuer and Firestone) brown leather jacket in a simliar cut that I've been using for driving and every-day wear in the cooler months for a few years now.

@Alfisti wrote:She has a powerful weapon......unfortunately she's also government property so charging a million a shot is out:

Another classy Bond allusion, mate. Unfortunately whenever you do that I get the theme song from that particular film stuck in my head for hours, and this one (by Scottish pop singer Lulu) was...unfortunate.

The contrasting elements of the YSL dress and the gloves/watch combination create a striking effect here.

@Professor Voodoo wrote:Another classy Bond allusion, mate. Unfortunately whenever you do that I get the theme song from that particular film stuck in my head for hours, and this one (by Scottish pop singer Lulu) was...unfortunate.

If it makes you feel any better, I've had it running on repeat on winamp for the last few days in the vague hope that I'll eventually get bored of it and it'll go away. No success yet though

Yeah, no prizes for guessing what I took to read on the plane. Started with Jesse whilst enduring a 5 hour stopover in LAX on the way back, continued by adding Jethro and Monty for kicks in flight and final markers added at home as I didn't want to go releasing marker fumes in the QANTAS's economy class cabin.

Tried something new lighting wise, looking for a sort of flattened, blown out look. You have no idea how much self control I exercised in not giving her some diamond-encrusted, straight topped, 80s style sunglasses.

The "flash" efect works very well - the ghosting lights as artefacts from an unsteady hand-held camera in particular are a nice touch, and I think that you've graduated the fading light into the background well too. The one thing that I might criticise would be the white diagonal strip across the car windscreen - there doesn't seem to be any purpose for it, it looks a little odd - but that's really only a niggle.

Tried something new lighting wise, looking for a sort of flattened, blown out look. You have no idea how much self control I exercised in not giving her some diamond-encrusted, straight topped, 80s style sunglasses.

"I am the sword of justiceForged by fate and tempered with timeI have struggled to stay true to his dreams and idealsNever knowing defeatNor victoryForever waiting for his returnThis is my, Infinite Sword Dance"

Another success Alfisti. I know I'm always saying this, but the way you utilize a large, dark background conveys depth very well. Character wise; contrasting a bright, smiling Allison (sitting under a street-light perhaps, the light seems to be coming from above) with her dark, urban alley surroundings is just how I picture her personality...cheerful, and a bit recklessly aloof to danger.

Last edited by Professor Voodoo on Tue 22 Jun 2010 - 18:46; edited 1 time in total